Today is commemoration of the reneging on pledges made to masses on January 8 th - President moving along political suicide ‘cyanide route’ !

(Lanka-e-News - 04.Sep.2017, 6.00PM) Maithripala Sirisena was the first presidential common candidate who got elected as the president of the country solely and wholly based on his most solemn promises to the masses that he would be non partisan after his victory . Nevertheless, it is with deep regret we are now reluctantly compelled to report to the 6.2 million Sri Lankans of the rainbow revolution who voted him into power on 2015-01-08 that despite his most solemn pre election and post election pledges as well as promises chose to cast his ‘non partisan’ promise into the garbage bin within 72 hours of his appointment as president to secure the leadership of SLFP and take the unstable , despicable and deplorable ‘cyanide route’ –political suicide !

Sadly Maithripala is now stranded at the crossroads to the detriment of the country because of the latest SLFP proposals pertaining to the new constitution. Though it was notified all party proposals in regard to the new constitution shall be sent in before the 31 st of August, the SLFP after dilly dallying finally handed over its belated proposals to the steering committee of the constitutional council. The proposals contained in a sealed covering letter was handed over to the secretary to the constitutional council .The official media spokesman Dilan Perera insisted , the sealed letter shall be opened only on the 6 th and 7 th , which are the days the steering committee will be meeting.

Based on reports reaching Lanka e news , the SLFP ‘s proposal is in favor of curbing the executive presidency power and against abolishing it. In other words the president is to continue as a leader elected on the people ‘s votes and not as a non executive president appointed by the parliament (non executive) . (If a president is elected on the people’s votes , he acquires powers of executive which are more than those under the constitution )

This stance of the SLFP is obviously a complete turnabout on its avowed policies because since the period of late Sirimavo Bandaranaike the SLFP along with her fiercely opposed and staged protests near the Pettah Bo tree against the introduction of the executive presidency by Late J R Jayawardena in 1978.

The president of the SLFP constitution formulation committee Nimal Siripala De Silva and its members earlier on said , their decision will be forwarded to president Maithripala Sirisena for his final ratification. Therefore the final proposals of the SLFP committee ought to have been handed over to Maithripala Sirisena for his ratification, while the latter each time he met with the leaders of the Civil organizations was vowing with all his strength that he would be in the vanguard of abolition of the executive presidency .

This being a clear exhibition of two contradictory stances it cannot represent the actual picture, because the leader of the party cannot take one stance while his own party’s committee is taking another stance. Besides ,in the history of the SLFP never had there been such a queer and dubious situation any day .

Under these circumstances , there are two indications : If it is the final view of the proposal committee whose chief is Nimal Siripala that the executive presidency shall be continued , then Maithripala Sirisena cannot any longer be accepted as the leader of the SLFP party because it is clear the Maithri faction of the SLFP is not obeying him and defying his leadership . If that is not the case , the stance of the SLFP committee is clearly that of Maithripala himself.

No matter what the overriding truth is Maithripala Sirisena continuing as executive president is tantamount to himself kicking out his election manifesto based on which he was voted into power by 6.2 million people who implicitly trusted in his solemn pledges and promises that he would abolish the executive presidency within 100 days of his being elected to power. Now that two years have elapsed since he was elected as the president of the country , it means without any doubt that it can inevitably pave the way for a rift within the consensual government .

It is significant to note, according to reports reaching Lanka e news , the UNP had already for the second time informed the president that if he is anxious to continue with enjoying the ‘sweet taste’ of the presidency some more , the UNP is prepared to gratify his whim by promising and co operating with him by naming Maithripala Sirisena for the second time to make him the president via the parliament , and thereby concede that privilege too to him, so that the SLFP will then extend its support to the new constitution in accordance with the 2015-01-08 people’s mandate.

Based on the new proposals of the SLFP however , it seems impossible to avert the possible policy crisis that can spring up between the UNP and president Sirisena. Indeed this is what the Rajapakse faction of the SLFP is earnestly anticipating and this can mean playing into their hands ; and Nimal Siripala being the ‘sculptor’ of the SLFP proposals , he could be the Rajapakse demonic spirit hiding under the attire of Maithripala . Yet , it is for Sirisena to see the issues in the right perspective , and it is he who should resolve those honorably and honestly in the best interests of the masses to whom he gave umpteen promises and pledges on which he is now reneging.

Meanwhile , based on reports reaching Lanka e news, at the SLFP convention on the 3 rd a resolution is to be adopted to continue with the executive presidency . Thereafter , president Maithripala is to sing a baila ‘ I agreed to abolish the executive presidency , but since that was opposed at our party convention , aney , now I cannot do anything. ‘

As the sophisticated residents in Colombo and London , so the Veddahs of Binthenna and the uncivilized pygmies of the Congo forest , in order to put their children to sleep sing their own lullabies , and the children too fall asleep. But let us warn , no crying child can be put to sleep just because any tribal member of the backwaters sings a ‘baila’ however tuneful.

In the event president Maithripala is unable to change his ‘cyanide route’ , fails to stand by the 2015-01-08 people ‘s mandate , and does not have the courage , integrity or spirit to live up to his most solemn promises and pledges he made to the people , it will be impossible to avert the inscription of his name Pallewatte Gamaralalage Maithripala Yapa Sirisena however long carved on the ignominious and inglorious historical records of Sri Lanka .